Captive flame

Looking around, there doesn’t appear to be a way to open the contraption. Stepping close, you call out. “Can you hear me? Is someone trapped in there?”

Very faintly, you hear the crying stop, and someone answers. “Please help me!”

You glance at Ferra, then draw your sword. This worked in the forge, it was worth a shot. “Stay away from the walls!”

You take a two handed cut at the sphere, and cut a long, curved slash into the metal. Flame gouts from the hole, and you stagger back. The heat is intense, but after a moment, the fire dissipates, though fingers of fire still lick at the glowing edges of the cut. You repeat the attack in the other direction, with a less fiery result. A final slash, low, and a triangular section of the orb falls outward, falling to the floor with a resounding clang.

Inside the sphere is a bright ball of fire, almost too bright to look at. A wave of heat washes over you, and you step back, shielding your face with your arm. There doesn’t appear to be a fuel source, and the fire seems to be diminishing. No, it’s coalescing, coming together into a glowing humanoid shape. Slowly, the glow and the heat fade, and the shape resolves into a woman, a beautiful one.

Flames still flicker around her as she slowly turns to face you with glowing eyes. Her red hair is long and unkempt, but otherwise she seems to be in good health. Her clothing is exotic and revealing, barely more than a set of skimpy underwear and a loincloth like drape over her backside. She is tall and lean, nearly your height, with small breasts and a slim body.

The last of the flames surrounding her fade, and she takes a step towards you, before her eyes roll back and she collapses. You jump forward unthinkingly, catching her in your arms. Fortunately, though she is warm to the touch, she isn’t exuding the heat she had before.

You glance at Ferra. The golem girl is looking at the unconscious woman with a surprising amount of interest. “Nicholas, I believe she is a efreet, a fire spirit.”

You nod. “Like aunt Sadie, but fire instead of wind.”

Ferra looks at you. “She appears to have been worked to exhaustion. What would you like to do?”

You look down at the unconscious efreet. “I suppose we should take her back to the ship. We can’t just abandon her here. She can rest in our room for now.”

Ferra nods, still looking at her. “She is…pretty.”

You chuckle. “She is. Hopefully she doesn’t attack us out of fear when she wakes. Let’s get her and these charts back to the ship.”